VW is not the green company it wants you to think it is. All rights reserved. Credit: Nick Cobbing/Greenpeace.

2. Volkswagen spends millions of pounds each year on groups lobbying against environmental laws

The most influential of these groups – ACEA (the car manufacturers’ association) in which VW is a powerful player – is leading the charge against fuel efficiency standards in Europe. These are the laws we need to reduce our oil use. By using less oil, it will cost less to fill our tanks and we won’t be sending reckless drillers to places like the Arctic, where they risk catastrophic spills.

4. As the biggest car company in Europe, Volkswagen has the biggest climate footprint of any car manufacturer in Europe.

One in five cars sold in Europe is a VW. In 2009, new cars sold by the company in Europe emitted over five million tonnes of CO2 per year, representing around a quarter of the total oil use and emissions of new European cars. Volkswagen's size means that any changes it makes would have a huge impact on vehicle emissions. Last year, VW only did the minimum necessary to comply with efficiency laws - reducing their emissions by 5 per cent - and are currently lagging behind companies like Toyota and BMW in the efficiency stakes.

5. Volkswagen penalises consumers wanting smarter, cleaner vehicles by artificially inflating their price and making them marginal to its fleet.

Although VW has developed its Blue Motion technology which can be built into their cars, making them cleaner and more efficient, it is only available as an expensive add-on. Volkswagen charges consumers up to an additional £1000 to add Blue Motion to a new car, even though the technology only costs around £260 to make. Making Blue Motion standard across its fleet would save consumers money on petrol and reduce demand for oil.